Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Business: Universities

Lord Allen of Kensington: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the changes that have placed responsibility for universities within the Department for Education and the responsibility for research, including for the research councils and Innovate UK with the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how they plan to ensure that businesses and the university sector work closely together to maintain the UK's research and science base, and to make the UK an attractive place to innovate.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: This Government has demonstrated its commitment to the UK’s research and science base, protecting £4.7bn funding in real terms at the Spending Review. Our proposals set out in the Higher Education and Research Bill will meet Sir Paul Nurse’s ambition to strengthen strategic leadership and maximise the benefit from the Government’s investment in research and innovation. A single minister for Universities and Science whose portfolio spans both departments will ensure coherence and integration across universities, research councils and Innovate UK and have a strong input into our industrial strategy.

Trading Standards

Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have conducted a review of trading standards this year and, if so, when they plan to publish the outcome of that review.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: The evidence and material from the recent Review of Trading Standards will be taken forward as part of the Cutting Red Tape Review of Local Authority Regulation and Enforcement. This review has closed for general comments and further evidence is being gathered and analysed. The Government will publish the findings from the Cutting Red Tape Review in due course.

Domestic Appliances: Fires

Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what recent discussions they have had with manufacturers about fires caused by faulty electric tumble dryers.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: Whilst the Government continues to meet regularly with representatives from the electrical appliances sector, the enforcement of the relevant legislation is a matter for local Government Trading Standards services. The recent modification programme for tumble dryers announced by Whirlpool is being overseen by Peterborough Council as the Primary Authority. The Government has asked Peterborough Council to provide regular updates on progress.

British Chambers of Commerce

Viscount Waverley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their relationship with the British Chambers of Commerce; what assessment they have made of the performance of that organisation; whether they have expressed any concerns to that organisation in the past four years; and if so, what was the nature of those concerns.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe: The British Chambers of Commerce is an important stakeholder for government and we engage actively with their senior team and the network of 52 accredited Chambers of Commerce in the UK. The British Chambers of Commerce is also a delivery partner for the Overseas Business Network initiative – a programme to increase the number and range of private sector partners supporting UK exporters in overseas markets. In 2013/14 and 2014/15, UK Trade & Investment trialled a number of initiatives with the British Chambers of Commerce, including co-ordinating UK-end activity and accrediting the overseas delivery partners. Following a review in November 2014, it was agreed that responsibility for co-ordinating the UK-end activity would be shifted from the British Chambers of Commerce to UK Trade and Investment’s regional delivery contracts with effect from April 2015. The British Chambers of Commerce continue to accredit overseas delivery partners.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Turkey: Kurds

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the collapse of the Dolmabahçe Agreement, whether they will discuss with the government of Turkey the proposal by Open Democracy of 15 steps for Turkish–Kurdish peace.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: We understand that the Government of Turkey did not commit itself to specific undertakings following the talks at the Dolmabahçe Palace in February 2015. We have been very clear that the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) violence must end in order to create the conditions for political resolution of the difficulties in the south east.

UK Withdrawal from EU

Lord Stoddart of Swindon: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to invoke Article 50 of the TEU immediately; and whether they will negotiate to withdraw from the EU within months, and not later than March 2017.

Lord Stoddart of Swindon: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to accelerate negotiations to leave the EU to ensure that they are completed before July 2017 when the UK is due to take over the Presidency of the Council of the EU.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The Government has no such plans.

UK Withdrawal from EU

Lord Stoddart of Swindon: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what instructions they have given to ensure that UK representatives in the EU Committee of Permanent Representatives (1) do not commit the UK to any new policies prior to withdrawal from the EU, and (2) facilitate a swift and effective withdrawal from the EU.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: Officials at the UK Permanent Representation act on the basis of Ministerial instructions, which will continue to be the case in the run up to and throughout the period of negotiations to exit the EU. The UK remains a full member of the EU until our leave withdrawal is completed. Consequently, rights and obligations in the EU Treaties and other EU law continue to apply until that time.

Baltic States: Russia

Lord Pearson of Rannoch: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of (1) the treatment of Russian minorities in the Baltic States, particularly Lithuania, and (2) whether such treatment would attract a response from Russia; and if so, what type of response that would be.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: There are sizeable Russian-speaking communities in Latvia and Estonia, and a smaller community in Lithuania. All EU Member States are obliged to meet the standards for minority rights and are subject to obligations and monitoring mechanisms, such as through the Council of Europe. Our Embassies in the Baltic States have supported programmes run by their host governments and non-governmental organisations to encourage integration, tolerance, diversity and respect for minorities - including programmes to support media plurality and social cohesion.

Namibia: Germany

Baroness Stern: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with the government of Germany about its recognition of the killings of Herero and Nama people in 1904–08 as genocide, and whether in the light of those discussions they have any plans formally to recognise those events as genocide.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The Government have not discussed the killings of the Herero and Nama peoples with the Government of Germany.It is the policy of the Government that any judgment on whether genocide has occurred is a matter for judicial decision, rather than for governments or non-judicial bodies.

European Commission

Lord Stoddart of Swindon: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether Sir Julian King will be obliged to swear an oath of allegiance to the EU, and what assessment they have made of whether that oath will conflict with the decision of the UK to leave the EU.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: We remain a full member of the EU until we leave and it is therefore our right under the treaties to have a Commissioner during that period. On their appointment, Commissioners are required to give a solemn undertaking to respect their obligations as Commissioners and behave with integrity and discretion.

South Sudan: Politics and Government

Lord Sheikh: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the political situation in South Sudan in the light of inter-tribal conflict between supporters of President Salva Kiir and First Vice President Riek Machar.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: Following recent fighting, the political situation in South Sudan remains tense. We continue to call on the leaders to demonstrate their commitment to the peace agreement and re-establish the peace process as soon as possible.

South Sudan: Conflict Resolution

Lord Sheikh: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what role they have taken since 2011, and are now taking, to resolve the conflict in South Sudan.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The UK has, and continues to maintain, a prominent role in the peace process in South Sudan. Since conflict broke out in 2013 we, along with the Intergovernmental Authority on Development and our Troika (US and Norway) partners, have provided substantial political, technical and financial support to both the peace talks and the implementation of the August peace agreement.Following the latest outbreak of violence in Juba, our immediate efforts are focused on the stabilisation of the country. We remain firmly committed to the people of South Sudan and call on the leaders to re-establish the peace process as soon as possible.

Northern Ireland Office

Sovereignty: Northern Ireland

Lord Empey: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what conditions have to be met before they would consider triggering a Border Poll in Northern Ireland, and whether those conditions currently exist.

Earl of Courtown: The UK Government remains fully committed to the Belfast Agreement. This includes the obligation for the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland to call a border poll if he believes there is majority support for a united Ireland. However, it is the Secretary of State’s view that a majority of the people of Northern Ireland continue to support the current political settlement, including Northern Ireland’s position within the United Kingdom.

Sovereignty: Northern Ireland

Lord Empey: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have had, or intend to have, discussions with the government of the Republic of Ireland about the possibility of holding a Border Poll.

Earl of Courtown: The Government regularly meets representatives from the Government of Ireland to discuss a range of issues. We will continue to hold such meetings throughout the process of negotiating our exit from the European Union. The UK Government remains fully committed to the Belfast Agreement. This includes the obligation for the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland to call a border poll if he believes there is majority support for a united Ireland. It is however the Secretary of State’s clear view that a majority of the people of Northern Ireland continue to support the current political settlement, including Northern Ireland’s position within the United Kingdom. As the Government’s Northern Ireland manifesto at the last election set out, the circumstances requiring a border poll are, therefore, not satisfied.

Department for International Development

RMS St Helena

Lord Foulkes of Cumnock: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the planned schedule for RMS St Helena for the next 12 months.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns: The current planned schedule for the RMS St Helena up to June 2017, which is available on the official RMS St Helena website, is attached for the convenience of the Noble Lord.



PQ HL1166
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Department for Education

Postgraduate Education: Admissions

Lord Freyberg: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many postgraduate students in England were enrolled in two-year masters’ degree courses in (1) 2009–10, (2) 2010–11, (3) 2011–12, (4) 2012–13, (5) 2013–14, (6) 2014–15, and (7) 2015–16.

Lord Freyberg: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many postgraduate students in England were enrolled in two-year masters’ degree courses to study (1) applied art and design, (2) art and design, (3) drama, (4) media, film or TV, (5) music, (6) dance, (7) performing arts, and (8) design and technology, in (a) 2009–10, (b) 2010–11, (c) 2011–12, (d) 2012–13, (e) 2013–14, (f) 2014–15, and (g) 2015–16.

Earl of Courtown: Information on enrolments at UK Higher Education Institutions is collected and published by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), and the latest academic year for which data are available is 2014/15. The Joint Academic Coding System (JACS) is the classification of subjects used by HESA. The specific breakdown of subjects requested is not available using the JACS classification, so a breakdown of the Creative Arts and Design category has been provided as an alternative. The government is for the first time introducing a new £10,000 master’s loan to support those wishing to progress into postgraduate study. First year enrolments1 to two-year masters2 degree courses in Creative Arts and Design subjects. English3 Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). Academic years 2009/10 to 2014/15: 2009/102010/112011/122012/132013/142014/15Fine art625610700630695700Design studies1,0251,1351,0901,0851,2251,125Music710700680675680630Drama165190205250230255Dance554545356550Cinematics & photography350335370445375200Crafts15152052010Imaginative writing400360380495370345Others in creative arts & design9012010512590110   Total (Creative arts & design)3,4253,5153,5953,7453,7503,425Total (all subjects)39,20032,99535,47533,63032,88533,965Source: BIS analysis of the HESA Student RecordNote: All figures are rounded to the nearest 5.Figures are Full-Person-Equivalents (FPE), so if someone is jointly studying Fine art and Design studies, they would count as 0.5 FPE within each category.Figures relate to students with an expected study length of less than or equal to two years, but more than one year.For consistency across years, the Open University is counted as an English HEI.

Office for Students

Lord Storey: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to include a dedicated place for a student representative on the Board of the Office for Students, and if so what arrangements they plan to make to ensure that that member has a democratic mandate from the students they represent.

Earl of Courtown: Schedule 1 of the Higher Education and Research Bill requires the Office for Students (OfS) to consider the desirability of including members with experience of representing or promoting the interests of individual students, or students generally in higher education. The appointment of OfS members will be made by the Secretary of State in accordance with the standard guidelines on public appointments, ensuring fair and open competition.

Students: Loans

Lord Storey: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what measures they have in place to ensure that the Student Loans Company does not continue taking payments after graduates have paid off the balance of their debt.

Earl of Courtown: There is a risk that borrowers coming towards the end of their loans may repay to much, as a result of a time lag between HMRC making deductions and their being reported to the Student Loans Company (SLC). In such cases, borrowers are advised to monitor their own repayments so they know when they are likely to come to the end of repaying their loan, as they could over repay otherwise. They are also encouraged to inform SLC that they wish not to have any remaining repayments through the PAYE system but repay their loan through a direct debit. Any amounts that are overpaid are refunded with interest by the SLC when borrowers’ accounts are reconciled at the end of the financial year.

Overseas Students

Lord Storey: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the result of the referendum on the UK's membership of the EU, how they plan to ensure that UK universities are still attractive institutions to study at for students from the EU.

Earl of Courtown: The UK has a long established system that supports, and therefore attracts, the brightest minds, at all stages of their careers. We fund excellent research wherever it is found, and ensure there is the freedom to tackle important scientific questions. The UK remains a member of the EU until our withdrawal is completed. There is no immediate effect on UK universities and their students and staff from EU countries. EU students currently eligible to receive funding from the Student Loans Company will continue to do so for courses they are currently enrolled on, or about to start this Autumn. The Higher Education and Research Bill reforms in England will enhance the reputation of our world-class HE system and drive up innovation, diversity, quality and capacity, ensuring we remain attractive internationally.

Degrees

Baroness Wolf of Dulwich: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, between 2013 and 2016 inclusive, how many institutions applied to the Quality Assurance Agency’s Advisory Committee on Degree Awarding Powers (ACDAP) with a view to obtaining (1) degree awarding powers, and (2) university title, but did not proceed to full scrutiny of their applications because of the ACDAP’s preliminary judgment and feedback; and of those, how many were (a) public or not-for-profit institutions, and (b) private for-profit providers.

Earl of Courtown: The Advisory Committee on Degree Awarding Powers (ACDAP) does not consider applications for university title. In the period 2013-2016, there have been two applications for degree awarding powers that did not proceed to full scrutiny of their application because of ACDAP’s preliminary judgement and feedback. One application was from a publicly funded provider and one was from a private for profit provider.

Universities: Antisemitism

Lord Turnberg: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of reports of increasing anti-Semitism in the UK, whether they will consult university Vice-Chancellors about what action they can take on the decision of the National Union of Students (NUS) to prevent the Union of Jewish Students from recommending a representative on the NUS Anti-Racism, Anti-Fascist Task Force.

Earl of Courtown: There is no place in our society for bigotry, hatred or any form of racism such as anti-Semitism. Higher Education Institutions are committed to challenging intolerance on campus. They have a clear responsibility under the 2010 Equality Act to provide a safe and inclusive environment. Student clubs, societies and associations, with a membership of over 25, are covered by the applicable requirements of the Equality Act 2010. This means they cannot discriminate, harass or victimise protected groups, as an employer, or in the provision of goods services and facilities, or as members or guests. We would expect all bodies representing students in English universities to be clear that there is no place for anti-Semitism in higher education. They should be doing everything they can to tackle anti-Semitism as they would all forms of racism. In response to growing concerns over hate crime Universities UK have established a Harassment Taskforce to consider further measures to address harassment on campus including religion and belief. Government has asked the UUK Taskforce to consider a number of specific actions in relation to anti-Semitism: The need for an improved data collection of incidents by institution, to ensure Universities are recording incidents effectively;The importance of a complaints process that protects the identity of students who are fearful of coming forward;The need for better training to help University staff understand the different forms anti-Semitism can take. The taskforce will provide a range of recommendations and actions in its report to ministers in the autumn.

Ministry of Justice

Asylum and Immigration Tribunal: Fees and Charges

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty’s Government why fees in the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal are to be increased, and what percentage of requests for a waiver of such fees were refused in each quarter since the beginning of 2015 to date.

Lord Keen of Elie: The financial challenges faced by the Government means taking tough decisions on reducing public spending across a wide range of services. That is why the Government consulted on proposals to increase fees in asylum and immigration proceedings. Breaking down the data requested by quarter would incur disproportionate costs.

Motorways: Driving Offences

Lord Snape: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many motorists have been prosecuted for the inconsiderate use of the middle lane on the motorway network since the announcement that the police would take appropriate action to discourage such behaviour.

Earl of Courtown: This information is not held centrally and can only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

The Lord Chairman of Committees

Peers: Email

Lord Laird: To ask the Chairman of Committees whether he will place in the Library of the House a copy of the Acceptable Use Policy or policies for Parliamentary emails.

Lord Laming: The Acceptable Use Policy for Lords Members and staff is available on the intranet (https://intranet.parliament.uk/Documents/computers-equipment/Working-securely/Good-digital-citizen/Acceptable%20Use%20Policy%20v1.2.pdf) and at the Digital Service Drop-in. A very similar policy is in place for MPs; the Digital Service is currently working on a single Acceptable Use Policy.



Acceptable Use Policy
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Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Domestic Animals: Animal Welfare

Lord Black of Brentwood: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they collect statistics on the number of domestic animals that die as a result of being locked in a car or other motor vehicle either because of lack of oxygen or from heat; and if so, how many such deaths were recorded in the last five years.

Lord Black of Brentwood: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many prosecutions there have been in the last five years for cruelty to animals arising from the death of a domestic animal being locked in a car or other motor vehicle.

Lord Gardiner of Kimble: The Government does not keep records of numbers of animals that die as a result of being locked in cars. Records of prosecutions related to animals dying in vehicles would fall under the general offence of causing unnecessary suffering to an animal which do not provide details of individual cases.

Home Office

Refugees: Children

Lord Pearson of Rannoch: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the average age of the child refugees they propose to take in from the conflicts in Syria and North Africa; what assessment they have made of the dominant religion of those children; whether it is their policy that priority should be given to Christian children; and, if not, why not.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The Syrian Vulnerable Person’s Resettlement Scheme prioritises the most vulnerable Syrian refugees, including families with dependent children of any age. Of the 1,602 Syrians who arrived between October 2015 and March 2016, around half were aged under 18. The Vulnerable Children’s Resettlement Scheme, announced in April, will resettle vulnerable children under the age of 18 from the Middle East and North Africa region, with their families or carers where appropriate. One of the reasons for creating the scheme was to allow the inclusion of children at risk from nationalities other than Syrian, including, for example, Yazidis from Iraq.For both schemes, we work closely with the UNHCR, who identify refugees for resettlement using their established vulnerability criteria rather than seeking to include children of a particular age. While membership of a minority religion is not in itself one of the vulnerability criteria, members of minority religions may qualify under one of the vulnerability headings. It is important that we base our selection criteria on those most in need, rather than on the basis of membership of a particular religious group.

Radicalism

Lord Pearson of Rannoch: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what progress they have made in clarifying their definition of "non-violent extremism".

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The definition of extremism is set out in the Counter-Extremism Strategy published on 19 October 2015 and is: ‘The vocal or active opposition to our fundamental values, including democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and the mutual respect and tolerance of different faiths and beliefs. We also regard calls for the death of members of the armed forces as extremist.’ This definition covers both violent and non-violent extremism.

Asylum: Education

Lord Storey: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 14 July (HL1030), how often priority dispersal internal checks occur, and what standard is required to pass those checks.

Baroness Williams of Trafford: The Home Office monitors the length of time all applicants spend in initial accommodation and works closely with Migrant Help, a charity that provides independent advice and support to asylum claimants, to ensure that families with children are identified and receive priority assistance to apply for housing and support in order to progress their application through the system quickly.Daily internal checks are in place to triage and identify applications for prioritising. The Home Office target for processing asylum support applications is 80% of applicants leaving Initial Accommodation in 19 days.UKVI officials work closely with the service providers to ensure that family applications are prioritised in recognition of the family’s needs and in accordance with our duty under section 55 of the Borders, Citizenship and Immigration Act of 2009.

Cabinet Office

Ministers: Pay

Lord Trefgarne: To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many ministers (1) in the House of Lords, and (2) in the House of Commons, are presently unpaid.

Earl of Courtown: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 03 August 2016.The correct answer should have been:

In the present Government there are five unpaid Ministers who are members of the House of Lords and three unpaid Ministers who are members of the House of Commons.

Baroness Chisholm of Owlpen: In the present Government there are five unpaid Ministers who are members of the House of Lords and three unpaid Ministers who are members of the House of Commons.

BBC Monitoring

Lord West of Spithead: To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the response by Lord Ashton of Hyde on 19 July (HL Deb, col 525), what assessment the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Ministry of Defence, National Security Council, Joint Intelligence Committee and National Crime Agency have made of the suitability of the planned changes to the provision of reporting by the BBC Monitoring Service.

Earl of Courtown: Government has been working closely with the BBC to ensure the requirements of the MOD, FCO, Cabinet Office, and the intelligence agencies can continue to be met by BBC Monitoring.

Monarchy: EU Law

Lord Tebbit: To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the heir to the throne is subject to EU law.

Earl of Courtown: In general, under UK law the Heir Apparent occupies the same legal status as a private citizen. The European Court of Justice has held that EU law must be interpreted in the light of the relevant rules of international law. As such, when abroad, the Heir Apparent may enjoy a specific status accorded to Heads of State and to the members of their family and household.

Department for International Trade

Overseas Trade

Viscount Waverley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what revenue they received, per country, for the Overseas Market Introduction Service in each of the past four years.

Lord Price: The table below sets out for each of the last four years, revenue generated based on the value of key activities delivered in all markets via UK Trade & Investment’s Overseas Market Introduction Service. Delivery MarketTotal Revenue 2012-13Total Revenue 2013-14Total Revenue 2014-15Total Revenue 2015-16Algeria£23,100.00£17,936.00£1,470.00£5,250.00Angola£25,440.00£58,856.00£15,270.00£22,290.00Argentina£51,520.00£39,719.00£12,732.00£8,148.00Australia£165,561.23£189,077.00£41,820.00£40,995.00Austria£90,195.00£165,394.00£49,599.00£49,728.00Azerbaijan£16,775.00£17,298.00£10,664.00£7,140.00Bahrain£21,410.00£36,866.00£35,646.00£26,460.00Bangladesh£33,720.00£39,230.00£9,804.00£20,790.00Barbados£7,740.00£2,240.00£2,916.00£4,410.00Belgium£61,445.00£57,808.50£24,752.72£39,270.00Bosnia and Herzegovina£8,655.00£6,732.00£8,700.00£2,940.00Brazil£428,418.05£482,047.00£110,976.00£82,018.20Bulgaria£22,025.00£31,707.00£9,791.58£9,030.00Burma£12,285.00£10,572.00£12,108.00£1,470.00Cambodia£0.00£14,744.00£0.00£0.00Cameroon£0.00£0.00£0.00£2,100.00Canada£81,641.63£126,106.00£81,874.00£64,848.00Chile£53,985.00£65,915.00£29,064.00£10,920.00China£698,212.83£668,480.00£464,761.92£114,905.84Colombia£49,335.00£54,933.00£19,704.00£2,090.00Costa Rica£14,515.00£14,658.00£3,780.00£5,460.00Croatia£17,251.80£19,992.00£5,628.00£9,030.00Cuba£16,925.00£11,026.00£5,040.00£17,640.00Cyprus£7,630.00£3,468.00£6,072.00£1,890.00Czech Republic£59,718.33£27,644.00£9,132.00£6,342.00Denmark£108,135.00£98,416.00£65,513.40£51,446.28Dominican Republic£16,905.00£14,892.00£11,922.00£16,590.00Ecuador£11,121.68£12,767.00£10,020.00£4,620.00Egypt£61,375.00£58,749.00£24,408.00£29,190.00Estonia£16,995.00£26,489.00£15,516.00£17,304.00Ethiopia£15,680.00£14,432.00£23,634.00£9,450.00Finland£35,795.00£48,512.00£41,460.00£26,040.00France£206,644.94£221,023.00£128,271.92£105,762.72Germany£249,214.96£255,350.00£149,347.50£72,166.08Ghana£59,175.00£81,456.00£24,900.00£24,780.00Greece£38,540.00£39,845.00£17,160.00£19,519.92Guinea£0.00£1,428.00£0.00£0.00Guyana£200.00£5,712.00£948.00£0.00Hong Kong (SAR)£145,191.08£124,931.00£30,481.00£47,412.00Hungary£35,950.00£48,087.00£9,558.00£3,360.00Iceland£15,115.00£5,460.00£0.00£630.00India£435,225.81£433,528.37£48,331.95£15,749.58Indonesia£76,890.00£86,181.00£62,292.00£13,818.00Iraq£47,605.00£26,078.00£3,894.00£0.00Ireland£49,310.00£49,485.00£11,682.00£15,540.00Israel£28,660.00£32,637.00£14,000.00£8,400.00Italy£142,610.00£131,258.00£61,138.00£79,193.10Jamaica£2,265.00£5,481.00£1,452.00£1,680.00Japan£391,130.02£310,469.00£67,835.00£156,564.00Jordan£59,360.00£49,785.00£12,036.00£5,880.00Kazakhstan£33,513.33£34,064.00£12,540.00£18,270.00Kenya£50,187.52£46,045.00£15,804.00£20,160.00Korea (South)£158,095.00£147,025.00£70,898.00£86,692.20Kuwait£54,538.33£24,494.00£36,618.00£43,554.00Latvia£15,480.00£26,276.00£15,516.00£13,230.00Lebanon£24,070.00£19,383.00£420.00£7,308.00Libya£29,100.00£14,766.00£0.00£0.00Lithuania£23,260.00£30,335.00£23,958.00£9,660.00Luxembourg£1,150.00£3,618.00£3,360.00£5,880.00Malaysia£129,835.00£118,779.00£56,058.00£28,602.00Mexico£229,660.00£245,240.00£159,522.00£99,319.50Mongolia£0.00£16,544.04£10,080.00£10,871.70Morocco£30,210.00£21,420.00£19,950.00£8,400.00Mozambique£3,120.00£13,172.00£5,568.00£6,930.00Netherlands£63,722.52£60,640.00£11,295.00£15,330.00New Zealand£35,077.20£40,299.00£12,624.00£8,526.00Nigeria£78,585.00£100,839.34£34,812.00£51,876.00Norway£66,065.00£70,176.00£51,932.00£24,990.00Oman£58,095.00£50,244.00£18,840.00£25,916.10Pakistan£52,400.00£54,555.00£23,292.00£28,770.00Panama£35,565.00£25,080.00£12,278.00£12,760.02Papua New Guinea£0.00£1,950.00£0.00£0.00Peru£28,745.00£30,528.00£4,560.00£4,950.00Philippines£59,265.00£62,027.00£19,716.00£8,022.00Poland£114,100.00£100,380.00£15,612.00£15,750.00Portugal£84,375.00£88,698.00£70,494.00£60,060.00Qatar£81,105.00£105,486.00£36,714.00£40,260.00Romania£79,385.00£72,032.00£71,860.98£3,822.00Russia£338,630.01£401,078.00£108,740.28£114,212.28Saudi Arabia£186,370.00£172,625.00£83,622.00£68,526.00Serbia£18,160.00£15,042.00£5,607.00£4,200.00Singapore£154,790.00£154,944.00£82,102.34£47,153.82Slovakia£8,745.00£3,672.00£0.00£0.00Slovenia£14,985.00£2,376.00£1,260.00£0.00South Africa£153,035.00£135,935.00£91,974.00£47,754.00Spain£153,630.00£154,478.00£63,714.00£75,175.02Sri Lanka£13,725.00£18,456.00£4,190.00£3,570.00Sudan£5,370.00£390.00£0.00£0.00Sweden£107,455.00£123,362.00£57,355.92£55,851.60Switzerland£75,047.52£88,306.00£67,188.00£73,920.00Taiwan£93,625.00£113,218.00£41,910.00£30,624.00Tanzania£28,422.52£34,041.00£19,020.00£13,965.00Thailand£95,638.33£104,259.00£64,812.00£15,072.00Trinidad and Tobago£32,165.00£51,646.00£4,748.00£5,826.00Tunisia£19,705.00£17,364.00£0.00£0.00Turkey£183,445.00£137,643.00£65,820.00£39,918.00Turkmenistan£0.00£1,220.00£1,260.00£1,470.00Uganda£23,130.00£18,741.00£2,448.00£7,245.00Ukraine£28,577.52£20,400.00£22,890.00£23,898.00UKREP£26,575.00£27,630.00£18,834.00£21,210.00United Arab Emirates£208,503.33£241,732.01£129,981.60£136,197.60United States£605,718.52£652,752.00£279,708.00£347,662.68Venezuela£25,830.00£28,356.00£3,672.00£0.00Vietnam£97,855.00£102,435.00£55,632.00£29,190.00Zambia£0.00£0.00£0.00£420.00

Trade Promotion

Viscount Waverley: To ask Her Majesty’s Governmentwhat is the procedure by which an Overseas Business Network is appointed; and who (1) administers the performance of, and (2) approves the budget for, each network.

Lord Price: The Overseas Business Network Initiative was launched in November 2012 to deliver trade support through partners, including overseas Chambers of Commerce. Overseas posts in selected emerging markets were asked to nominate potential partners via a business case process. Working closely with the British Chambers of Commerce, UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) Ministers and officials reviewed the business cases and selected partners against set criteria. Heads of Trade and Investment in individual markets administer the performance of each Overseas Business Network partner, reporting back to UKTI HQ. The UKTI HQ team approve the budget for each network partner.

Trade Promotion

Viscount Waverley: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what amount they have paid for, or directly to, each of the Overseas Business Networks in each of the past four years.

Lord Price: The annual budgets for the Overseas Business Network Initiative were as follows: £12m in 2013/14£15m in 2014/15£12m in 2015/16£11m allocated for 2016/17